Home
by KSkinner20
Summary: A series of short oneshot stories about the relationships between Team Voltron as they adapt to their new home in the Castle of Lions.
1. Pidge's Cold

"All right team, we're only a few days out from the location Ulaz gave us." Shiro stood at the front of the bridge, focused on Coran's screens. The entire crew had gathered by his side to go over today's plan, and they were steadily progressing forward now that they had gotten Zarkon off their tail. Making progress was always good, but he had to wonder if the members of the Blade of Marmora would be as eager to help as they had been inclined to believe.

"There are multiple small settlements on the way that have released distress signals." Allura put up a handful of small, blinking red planets on the screen between their ship and the supposed location of the Blade of Marmora. "As the Paladin's of Voltron, it is your duty to help those planets whenever we possibly can."

"Ugh." Lance groaned at that, swinging his head back in a moan. "We _finally_ just got Zarkon to quit following us around. Can't we have a break for a minute to relax?"

"These planets are small, it won't take long to help them out." Shiro understood what Lance was saying. They were all tired from Zarkon's game of cat and mouse, but this was their duty. "Besides, wh-"

 _Cough, cough, cough_.

Shiro was a little distracted by the rattling cough from one of the Paladins but chose to ignore it. "When we agreed to pilot the lions, we agreed to help those-"

 _Cough….cough, cough, cough._

"-in need. Zarkon rules almost all of the-" C _ough "-_ known universe. It's going to take time and dedication-" _Cough, cough._ "-To return the freedom to those he's-" _Cough, cough, cough._

Shiro tapered off. No one was paying attention to what he was saying. Everyone was staring at Pidge, who was sitting slumped in her chair, coughing into her sleeve. It was one of those hard, hacking coughs that refused to be stifled. It wasn't intentionally rude, and she was doing her best to keep it quiet by covering her mouth with her sleeve. Her hair was unkempt from the previous night's sleep and she had dark shadows under glazed over eyes.

"Pidge, are you okay?" Hunk asked a little tentatively, leaning over his armrest towards her.

She gave a nod and let out a few more coughs into her sleeve. "I'm fine - _cough_ \- I'm fine really. I'm just - _cough_ \- I'm just not feeling very good today."

"You're sick?" A look of concern came over Shiro's face, as did everyone else's.

"Wait, you're sick?!" Lance exclaimed. "With what? What if it's some weird alien disease?"

"What kind of alien disease?" Hunk knit his brows together. "Maybe you caught it on Taujeer. Or no, maybe the space mall. Is it common courtesy for aliens to wash their hands after going to the bathroom? Oh man, what if it's a really bad alien disease?"

"Maybe she'll turn into some crazy alien sludge monster. Or maybe instead of sweating a lot like Coran did, she'll drool a lot or something crazy like that." Lance's imagination was already going far off the deep end.

"You guys." Pidge tried to interject, but her coughing was making it difficult to get many words out.

"It could be a case of vicious gerd." Coran peered at Pidge, getting close to her face and looking her up and down. "Her skin tone does seem a little pale, and are you shivering?"

"Where could she have contracted that, Coran? We haven't been anywhere near the eighth tangent." Allura was looking at her now with concern. She noticed right away that Pidge did seem to be shivering slightly. "Oh no. Coran, if she's gotten vicious gerd, what are we going to do? Even some of Altea's best medicine couldn't cure that."

"Guys…" Pidge was feeling a lot like some kind of zoo animal with all these people in her face, and she covered her mouth with her sleeve so she wouldn't cough on them. Lance was still going on about growing pointy teeth and horns or multiple eyes.

"What?!" Hunk jumped out of his seat and ran to Pidge's side. "What's vicious gerd? Are you saying she's going to die?! Pidge is going to die?!"

"You guys." Keith's voice cut through the noise as he got up from his seat across the room. "She's not going to die. You're letting your imagination run wild again just like always."

"Besides, if she was going to die, you all would be contaminated already, since you're all up in her face." Lance pointed out, which made the others jump away from her like she was some kind of rabid beast.

"Everyone relax." Shiro stepped in with an authoritative voice. "If Pidge did contract some weird alien disease, we can handle it. We'll find a cure for her."

"You guys need to stop freaking out." Pidge was finally able to get a word in. "I'm pretty sure it's just a regular, human cold. I'm fine, I just need to rest a little."

"But you're in _space_." Lance sounded almost disappointed that she wasn't growing a third arm. "It could be _anything._ "

"Well, it's not. It's just a cold." She sneezed into her elbow.

"A cold?" Coran and Allura shared questioning looks at each other.

"In that case, you need to rest." Shiro set a comforting hand on her shoulder. "We still have time before we reach the Blade of Marmora's location. We can handle it in the meantime while you get some sleep."

"Are you sure?" Pidge looked up at him and he could easily see how under the weather she was from her pale face and clammy looking skin.

He nodded. "The planets are small. There shouldn't be too many enemies. We can handle it."

"Okay." She took his offer and slid off her chair, wrapping her arms around herself as she made her way out of the bridge. She gave one last look back at everyone. "I'm not dying okay? I'm just going to go sleep it off."

That didn't seem to reassure anyone much and she headed out the door to hopefully spend the rest of the day in bed. Within minutes, she had donned her pajamas and wound herself up in her blankets.

She drifted in and out of sleep, usually due to being wracked with a coughing fit or from being too hot or too cold. Every time she would finally start to feel comfortable enough her body would decide otherwise. She groaned a little. Being sick sucked.

She tossed and turned enough to finally wear herself out and fall into an uneasy sleep, but not too long after she did, she started to feel heavy, like a weight was on her chest. She tried to ignore it and chalk it up to congestion, but it kept getting heavier and heavier and hot. It was becoming so intolerably hot…

Sweat started to bead on her forehead and she couldn't ignore it anymore. She flung her body to kick off the blanket, but found that it had become unbearably heavy. She cracked open her eyes a little in hopes of finding some relief for the heat and nearly jumped out of her skin when the first thing she saw was Coran's face.

"Hello." He greeted her cheerfully. He was sitting right beside her bed with a heated fan, blowing as hot as it could go on her face. "We're here to help get rid of your cold. You just rest now."

"We…?" Pidge looked around the room and spotted Allura, who had a mountain of blankets beside her. She was laying them one by one on top of Pidge, who had a good heap of blankets pinning her down to the bed already. Pidge groaned and let her head fall back to her pillow. "What are you two doing…?"

"You said you had a cold, so we're making sure you stay warm." Allura flashed a smile from the foot of the bed. "We Alteans don't get the cold, so this is the best method of curing we could come up with."

"We wouldn't want you to freeze to death here after all." Coran held the heater so close that she could almost feel her eyeballs drying up. She let out an exhausted sigh.

"You guys, it's not like that. I'm not freezing to death. My body temperature is actually already higher than it should be. It's just called a cold." Pidge started to pull the blankets off of her, but there were so many that it was just tiring her out. Her legs were already feeling sticky with sweat and she just wanted to sleep. She sat up and grabbed the pile and shoved them all into a heap on the floor.

"Why do they call it a cold then?" Coran stepped back as she pushed the heater away from her.

"I…I don't know. I don't care. I just need to sleep. I'll figure it out later and let you know." She made sure there were no blankets on her except a thin sheet and wrapped up, lying back down and facing away from them. They lingered for a minute, likely baffled by the oddity of human illnesses, before she heard a click of the door as they left. Thank goodness…maybe she could get to sleep now.

After a few rounds of coughing, she started to drift again. Her eyelids felt heavy and her body was tired and she began to fall into the sweetness of sleep…

"Hey Pidge?" Lance's voice wrenched her back as he peeked in the doorway. "Do you need anything? Any extra pillows? Some water?"

"No…" she mumbled, hoping that that would be the end of it and he would go away, but she could still hear him lingering.

"You sure…? I can get you some tea or something." He glanced around the room. "Do you want me to put those blankets back up on the bed?"

"No, Lance. I'm fine. I just want to sleep." Her words came out pretty sharp both from irritation and exhaustion and he stepped back a little.

"Okay…." He closed the door quietly and she sighed in relief, but it only lasted a few seconds before he was back.

"I can let you borrow my plush shark if you want. He makes for a pretty good snuggle buddy when you're sleeping." He was poking the shark in the doorway, as if it was talking for him. "Everyone needs a snuggle buddy when they're sick."

"Lance." She spat his name, and shot a nasty glare in his direction. "I. Want. To. Sleep."

"So…is that a no…?" He gave a pout and hugged his shark. "He always made me feel better…"

"No, Lance." Pidge wrapped the sheet around her head, as if it would create a barrier between her and anyone that entered the door. She desperately wished it would.

He was quiet, but he hadn't closed the door yet, so she knew he wasn't gone. "So…no to the water too?"

"Lance. Go away!" The yell caused a coughing fit and he stared until she gave him the most horrifying death glare he'd ever received in his life. He yelped at that and hastily shut the door.

She groaned and lay on her back, trying to get her coughing in check so she could try to sleep again. Boy, if she ever thought being sick sucked when she was a kid, this was way worse. At least when she was a kid, her mom was there with medicine and soup, and Matt would always stay by her side…

She didn't have a chance to reminisce for too long before she heard the door pop open again, and she sneered. "Lance!"

"Not Lance, its Hunk." There was a blur of yellow at the door as he pushed it open with his back. In his hands he had a steaming bowl of what smelled like soup, which he sat at her bedside table. "Are you hungry? I made you some soup. It's chicken noodle….well…the space version of chicken noodle. But it tastes the same, I promise."

She looked up at him for a minute, debating whether to yell at him to leave, or just deny the offer before she decided that either option was just too much work. She sat up and rubbed her eyes. "Sure…"

"Great. It took a few tries to get it right. I tried a lot of different ingredients since it's not easy to find chicken broth in space. Or chickens." Hunk scooped out a spoonful of soup before blowing on it and holding it out to her.

She stared at him with a raised eyebrow. "I don't need you to feed me. I'm not _that_ sick."

"Oh, right, sorry." He grabbed the bowl and handed it to her. She took a few bites, and she had to admit…it was really good. Usually when you're sick everything tastes bland, but he'd found a way to make it taste…well…like home. Just like her mom's homemade chicken noodle soup. It was really refreshing.

"Is it good? My mom always made me soup when I was sick." Hunk watched her as she ate a few spoonfuls. "I always thought that it was what made me feel better, so I thought I would give it a try."

"It's great." She flashed him a smile, but her lack of sleep and weary body were quickly catching up to her. She could only eat a few bites before her eyelids were threatening to close on her. She struggled to stay awake and eat more, because it really was delicious, but it became a losing battle.

Hunk watched her bob a few times before he took the bowl away from her and helped her lay down. He pulled the blanket to her chin and made sure she was comfortable. "If you want any more later just let me know."

"Okay…" She was already halfway to dreamland, so Hunk gathered the dishes and made his way out. He passed Lance in the hall with an armful of stuffed toys, and Keith wasn't too far behind him heading in the same direction.

"Oh, you guys, she's asleep." Hunk alerted them, which made Lance frown.

"What? I had the perfect one for her." He held out a little owl plush. "Pidge loves owls. It's perfect."

"Is this what people do when they're sick…?" Keith inquired, looking inquisitively between Hunk's dishes and the owl plush. "Get toys and eat soup…?"

"Well…yeah." Lance answered as if it was obvious. "Whenever I get sick my niece and nephew will always bring me their favorite toy. I used to do the same thing for my siblings. It's like a get well soon good luck charm."

"Yeah, and my mom always makes chicken noodle soup. I thought that was pretty normal. Is it not?" Hunk looked a little perturbed at the idea that his tradition might be strange.

"Have you never gotten sick before?" Lance raised an eyebrow at Keith.

"Of course I've gotten sick before." Keith defended himself and crossed his arms, but averted his eyes. "Whenever I got sick I just…slept. You guys are just doing all this stuff that seems like it's more annoying than helpful."

"It's not annoying!" Lance frowned and stepped up to him defiantly. "You're just jealous because no one would make you soup or give you their toys if you were sick."

"I'm not jealous." Keith challenged Lance's stance. "I wouldn't want people to do that anyway, because then I wouldn't get any sleep."

"You guys." Hunk sighed. There was no point in trying to stop this, so he continued on his way to the kitchen. "Just keep it down so you don't wake up Pidge."

Luckily, their bickering fell on deaf ears. Pidge had been so exhausted that now that she was asleep, even her coughing couldn't wake her. Hunk's soup kept her belly warm and comfortable and she entered a dream world where the fever and weakness couldn't reach.

In her dreams, she was a kid again, probably around eight years old. She was in her bed, coughing little pathetic coughs into her hands. Her mother stood at the bedside, and she could remember the cold, comforting touch of her hand on her forehead.

Matt sat crisscross on the foot on the bed, watching over her. He was always there when she got sick. She couldn't remember a time when she'd gotten a cold and he hadn't stayed by her side the entire time. Every time she awoke from a feverish sleep, he had been there to see if she needed anything. When she was awake, he would tell stories, and make her laugh, so that she would forget about being sick at all.

When she had the flu or stomach bug, her mom would make chicken noodle soup. But when she was only a little sick, she would make tomato soup and grilled cheese for her and Matt. It always made her feel warm inside and ready to fall asleep and the next day she would always feel better.

It felt so lonely without them here. The foot of her bed felt empty and cold. When she woke up, Matt wouldn't be there to ask her what she needed or to make her laugh. Her mother wouldn't have warm grilled cheese or soup at the bedside table. The thought made a knot form in her throat and tears bud in the corners of her eyes.

Would she ever see Matt again? Every lead she'd found so far ended up in a dead end. She kept digging up new ways to try to track him down only to lead to nothing. And if she did find him…would they ever be able to return to Earth and see Mom again? Mom was all alone now. Alone with no answers as to where or what happened to her family. She had to get back somehow, and she had to bring Matt and Dad back with her. She missed her family. She missed home.

Something cold and wet touched her forehead, and it was enough to draw her out of her sleep. She opened her eyes just a sliver and brought her hand to her head, feeling a damp washcloth that someone had put there to help her fever. The bedside lamp was on too.

"Sorry, did I wake you?" Shiro stood at the side of her bed, looking like he was about to leave, and he gave her an apologetic smile. "If you're feeling up to it, I brought you some water and cold medicine."

"Medicine?" She mumbled and looked at the red liquid in the cup beside her. "Where did you get this…?"

"Hunk made it. It's not going to work as well as the stuff you would get at a pharmacy on Earth, but he did a lot of research into using alien herbs that should help a little. He said it may not taste great though." Shiro helped her sit up and handed her a glass of water.

Pidge obediently took her medicine and made a disgusted face at the taste, eagerly taking the water. "Geez, he wasn't kidding."

Shiro laughed and took her emptied glass. "It should at least help bring your fever down."

"What time is it…?" She got settled back down in her blankets and coughed a few times, but it didn't lead to a fit, thankfully.

"About 7 o'clock at night." Shiro turned her bedside clock so she could see it.

"Wow. Everyone left me alone for that long…?" She closed her eyes. Amazing. They had been coming in an out constantly at the beginning there.

"I think I know why that is." Shiro laughed again, but didn't elaborate. He clicked off her light to let her rest again. "If you need anything at all, just let us know."

"Okay…Thanks…" She mumbled, half asleep again already. He took that as his cue to go, and shut the door quietly behind him.

The next time she woke up, the clock read 3:14 am and she had to pee. She forced herself to sit up and fumbled around on her nightstand until she found her glasses. She sat for a moment and coughed a few times, but she did admit that she was feeling a little bit better. Hunk's medicine had done wonders for the fever, so hopefully a little more rest would get her back on her feet.

Once she was awake enough to stand up she made her way to the door with a yawn, but she nearly jumped out of her skin when she opened the door and saw a dark figure hunched beside it. The hallway was pitch black, so she couldn't make out who or what it was, but her terrified yelp made it stir.

"Pidge…?" Keith's tired voice made her relax a bit, knowing that it wasn't some alien monster trying to get into her room. He was sitting beside her door with his knees to his chest and his arms crossed over them, and she could only assume he had fallen asleep there for…some reason.

"What are you doing…?" She watched as he stretched and stood up, making his silhouette much more recognizable. She assumed he had unintentionally fallen asleep, since it was hard to imagine she would want him to think he was some creep who slept outside her door.

"Nothing. I just…everyone kept coming in and out, and I figured you weren't getting any sleep, so I stayed out here to keep them away. I didn't mean to fall asleep." He seemed a little embarrassed about that part. "I'll go now. Feel better."

Pidge watched as he ventured down the hall and she raised an eyebrow. How long had he been there…? After Hunk had come the only other person to wake her up had been Shiro. If he had been referring to Keith when he mentioned knowing why no one had bothered her, then Keith had to have been there for hours.

After using the bathroom, she got herself back to her bed and wrapped herself up in her blankets. As she laid down, she noticed a little stuffed owl beside her pillow, and gave a soft laugh. Her smile lingered as she closed her eyes and began to drift. Everyone here was doing their best to help her feel better in the ways that they knew how. Maybe it wasn't her mom and Matt at her bedside, but really it wasn't so bad.


	2. Hunk's Lesson

"Alright, I think we have everything we need." Hunk stood behind the kitchen island with his hands on his hips. In front of him were all sorts of ingredients, all ranging in colors and textures. He peered at them as he checked off his mental recipe list and gave a nod. "Okay, let's get started."

On the other side of the counter Allura picked up one of the jars and examined the purple jelly-like substance inside before looking back at Hunk. "Where did you get all of these ingredients? And what are they?"

"I've been collecting them from all of the planets we've visited. Honestly, I don't really know what they are, but I do know that they taste good." Hunk picked up something that looked like a bowl of pink clouds. "This stuff tastes a lot like sugar."

"Sugar…?" Allura raised an inquisitive eyebrow. Hunk had been cooking for them for a good number of months now, and nothing he had made yet had tasted bad. She had assumed he had been using the ingredients in the pantry that the ship mashed together into food goo, but apparently he had been building up a rather large arsenal of…unknown edibles. Recently, after dinner he had been serving what he called "dessert" which consisted of absolutely delectable little "pastries" as he called them. She had fallen in love with them, and had insisted that Hunk teach her how he made them. He had seemed overjoyed to have someone else in the kitchen with him, but now she was feeling a little overwhelmed.

"Yeah, sugar is what we use on Earth to make everything sweet." Hunk gathered a large and a small bowl and set them in front of her. "Didn't you guys have sweets on Altea?"

"Altean food is primarily based on nutritional value." Allura watched as he brought out little measuring cups and spoons. This seemed like a fairly complicated process compared to what she was used to. "The 'food goo', as you Paladin's call it, is an example of a well-balanced, nutritional Altean meal. Taste and appearance are unnecessary qualities. I mean, of course it has to be edible or no one would want to eat, but it isn't a primary concern. Your desserts taste like nothing I've ever had before, if that is how you define 'sweet'."

"So I'll take that as a no. Okay then, we're going to start slow. We're going to make some sugar cookies." A smile spread across his face. "Sugar cookies are great because you can cut them into whatever shapes you want and then decorate them with icing. Don't worry, I've perfected the recipe so they won't come out like those scaultrite cookies the other day."

She chuckled lightly at that and rolled up her sleeves. "Alright, where do I start?"

He pushed towards her the smaller bowl. "Okay, we're going to mix the dry ingredients. On Earth, this would be flour, baking powder and baking soda. Since we don't have those here, I've been working on finding the closest things to it."

He held up a little tiny vial of light green liquid. "This stuff is the closest to flour I've found yet. We need 2 and 3/4 cups of flour."

"Okay." Allura took the measuring cups and looked at them inquisitively. They were handmade to be the appropriate size and by his guidance she held out the largest one. He opened up the vial and very carefully dropped a single droplet of the liquid into the cup. Once it hit the bottom it immediately expanded into fluffy green granules, filling the cup almost instantly. Fascinating.

"How long did it take you to find the right combination to make these sugar cookies?" She continued to follow his guidance, pouring the dry ingredients into the small bowl, reveling at their unusual qualities. She stirred them together and once blended they turned a soft blue color.

"It took a lot of trial and error and a lot of eating bad cookies." Hunk made a disgusted face at the memory. "After the first round or two the others stopped helping me taste test."

"After your scaultrite cookies, I can see why." She laughed.

"Hey, they came in handy." He defended. "Besides, every failure helps me learn more about all these new ingredients so it's not all bad."

In the large bowl they began to mix the wet ingredients, which were even more odd than the dry ones. The purple jelly acted as butter and when it touched the pink sugar clouds, they turned into a liquid which she stirred until it was a smooth and thick. Then he used a few drops of some red extract, which he stated tastes as close to vanilla as he could get so far, and last, and quite possibly the only relatively normal item they had, was an egg with a maroon colored yolk.

Allura worked on mixing it all together, watching it as it all turned a soft pink color. It was really quite amazing to see such a clear reaction by combining different ingredients. She wouldn't have had the patience to experiment with all these weird and unknown things. What if they had been poisonous? "How did you learn to cook?"

"My mom." He wiped down the counter before dropping a single drop of the flour-liquid on it and spreading it out. "She taught me everything I know. She used to work long hours, so when she would come home we would cook dinner together every night. It was a lot of fun, but I can never make anything taste as good as she did."

The memory brought a smile to his face and she reflected it. Often she tended to forget that the Paladins were still very young, just like her, and they had a family out there still. One that they likely wanted to get back to someday. "Did your father not cook with you as well?"

"Well, my mom raised me on her own, so my dad wasn't in the picture much. Which is fine." he added quickly when she gave him a slightly perturbed look. "My mom did a really great job raising me. So I didn't need a dad around."

"I see…" She began gradually mixing the wet and dry ingredients together. "I suppose my upbringing was the opposite. My mother passed when I was fairly young, so It was just me and my father."

"Yeah, so you know, it's really not that bad being raised by a single parent. They work twice as hard for you, so I always felt like it was like she loved me twice as much." He grinned, and that smile said that he absolutely believed that. "I hope that we can defeat Zarkon soon so I can go back to Earth and make sure she's doing okay."

"Yes…" Those words made her a touch sad. She had to admit she was a bit jealous that he could dream of seeing his mother again. Sadly, it wasn't an achievable reality for her.

He noticed her change in demeanor and aimed for a distraction. "Okay, now we have to roll it out on the counter and then we can cut the shapes."

She dumped the now solid, lavender ball of dough onto the spot he had laid flour out on the counter and he handed her a rolling pin. She got to work on rolling out the dough as Hunk prepped the pans and set the oven. He threw out ideas of what shapes they should make and she laughed when he mentioned things like "Coran's Mustache" and "Keith's Mullet" as possible shapes. It wasn't long before they were cutting Paladin helmets, lions, and bayards out of dough. Hunk attempted to shape ones to look like Lance and Shiro, but they came out looking horribly mutated, which sent them both into fits of laughter.

As the cookies baked, Hunk guided Allura on making the icing in various colors, and spooning them into bags so that they could be piped on top of the cookies. The smell of the baking sweets was enough to make her mouth water. Why didn't Altean food smell this good?

She waited impatiently for the cookies to cool once they were done baking, and while they waited Hunk told her about the plethora of sweets they could make. Cakes, doughnuts, cheesecakes, ice cream, eclairs, napoleons, macaroons; his list seemed endless. His expressions were so animated when he spoke of them that she wished she knew what they tasted like now.

"Now for the fun part. Decorating." Hunk laid out the cookies neatly on a cooling rack, and once baked they were a soft lavender in color. He handed her a bag of icing. It wasn't easy at first, and she frowned as her string of icing refused to follow the line she wanted. She ended up making the green lion nothing but a messy green blob. She was determined to improve.

Hunk made just as many mistakes, focusing hard on icing the cutout of Coran's head. The icing got all squiggly and made his mustache take up most of his face and Allura giggled at the mistake.

Together, they iced every cookie, occasionally bursting into laughter at the ridiculous results that the uncooperative icing caused. By the end they had icing all over both the table and on their hands and faces. Hunk cheered her on as she focused intensely on making at least one cookie look perfect, and she succeeded on the cookie of the blue lion. She showed it off with such pride that when Lance threatened to eat it, she about took his hand off.

She looked at Hunk with a large, gleaming smile. It was a smile like his mothers; warm and cheerful and contagious. "Hunk, will you teach me to make more sweets?"

He laughed. "Of course, Princess."


	3. Allura's Birthday

Allura sat in the empty A.I chamber with her hands folded in her lap. She sat with her back straight and her eyes closed, and in the silence she could envision the mountain juniberry fields. Spans of beautiful pink flowers cascaded along rolling hills and mountains all around her. A soft, warm breeze flitted through her hair and brought the sweet fragrance of the flowers to her nose. But it was only a memory. She would never smell those sweet juniberries again. She would never feel the grass beneath her toes and never find loose petals in her hair. Altea was gone. She would never be home again.

That reality was even more difficult today than any other day. Today was her first birthday since her father's death and Altea's destruction. It was proving to bring to surface a lot of difficult emotions.

She felt the familiar wetness of budding tears and straightened, taking a slow and calming breath. She pushed the tears back with focus. She would not cry anymore.

With the loss of her home she felt like she had gained an immense weight on her shoulders. Her father had died fighting for Altea. He had died fighting against the Galra. She could not allow his death to be in vein. She had to pick up where he had left off, and continue the fight. And yet, it felt so heavy.

It was terrifying. The Paladins…they were improving, but they still had so much work to do. The original Paladins had managed so many incredible feats and unlocked so many unfathomable powers with the lions and with Voltron. Could these new Paladins ever reach that level? They didn't have the time that the original Paladins had. They had an entire Empire to overthrow and an entire universe to liberate. It was…a daunting task.

She often found herself feeling overwhelmed by it all. When she did, she longed for Altea, and for her father. If only she could speak with him when she had to make vital decisions and doubted herself. If only she could speak with him and get his advise, she could feel more sure about her choices. But he wasn't here. Even his A.I. was gone. She was alone, trying to learn how to be a diplomat and a leader, alone.

Her father had made it look so easy. He had been a much loved ruler, with his people always first in his mind. He made hard decisions seemingly with ease and fought alongside many nations to bring peace to the universe. He had been such a strong person that she had always looked up to. He had been her role model. One day when she would be the ruler of Altea, she wanted to rule just like him.

But Altea was gone now, and she had been thrown into this position with no one to teach her. She had to be strong, like her father. She could not afford to show weakness. She could control her emotions. It was up to her to be her father's legacy. She would not let him down.

Control. She had to be in control. Even today, when the tightness in her chest kept on constricting and the tears in her eyes threatened to spill over. She had to be strong. Her strength would encourage the Paladins and instill confidence in their allies. She needed strength to gather a force that could reckon with Zarkon.

"You must be strong." She squeezed her hands together, focusing on calming her mind. The child in her kept thinking back to Altea. Memories flooded to the forefront of her mind. The past birthdays she had spent with her family that were such happy memories, were now filled with longing and sadness. She wanted to be back there, if not just for one day, just one day and then she could be strong everyday after.

She squeezed her eyes shut and the tears collected on her eyelashes. She focused on getting herself in check and spoke her thoughts aloud. "Altea is gone, Allura. I cannot dwell on it any longer. I have a mission I must focus on now. For Father's sake, I must focus on this mission. I am not a little girl anymore. I am a leader. People are relying on me to remain confident and sure in my decisions. They will not believe in a leader who is weak. I cannot be weak."

Not even for one day?

Her eyes snapped open as she heard the room's door slide open and Coran peered inside. He spotted her immediately, since the room was empty otherwise. "There you are, Princess. What are you doing here…?"

"I was just…thinking. That's all." She quickly blinked away the few tears that had managed to escape and gave him a forced smile. Hopefully it was believable enough. "Is everything alright?"

"Yes. The teleduv is good as new with the new scaultrite lenses and the Paladin's seem well rested now that Zarkon has stopped following us." He walked over to her and took a seat on the steps beside her, folding his hands over his knee. She turned her face away so he couldn't look at her and he got the message and faced forward. "What about you, Princess? Have you gotten enough rest?"

"Yes, I'm…I'm feeling just fine now." She stared at her hands, still intertwined in her lap.

"If you're feeling up to it, Hunk is putting together a rather interesting meal for everybody." He gave her a gentle smile. "Though I'm not entirely sure if it will be good or not, as humans seem to forgo nutritional value for taste and looks."

She was quiet for a moment. She wanted to be alone for a little while, still finding it very difficult to gather her emotions today. But hiding away in here wasn't going to help anything and she knew that. Maybe it would be better to distract herself. She forced a small chuckle. "Well, we won't know if it's any good until we try."

Coran smiled, but he had known her for her entire life. He had known that today would be a difficult day for her. Neither of them made any effort to move and a silence lingered before Coran broke it with a somber voice. "Princess, I know that your father would be proud of you, and I know that he would wish for nothing more than to be here with you today."

He saw her shoulders tense slightly and her fingers tightened as she hid her face behind her hair. Gently, Coran placed his hand on hers. She opened her palms when she felt something cold in his hands, and when he pulled away she looked at what he had given her.

It was a gold disk, about the size of her palm. Inlaid in the center of it was a beautiful blue gemstone carved in the shape of the royal Altean insignia. The gemstone was native only to Altea and it gleamed bright even from the minimal light in the room. Her eyes widened as she peered at it and she brought a hand to her mouth. Only the king and queen possessed one of these, and it was always on their person at all times. It was the equivalence to a crown on Earth. It was only removed when it was passed on to the next heir. She looked up at Coran, new tears in her eyes that she didn't bother to hide. "How…?"

"Your father gave it to me before he put me into the cryo-sleep. I made a lot of promises to Alfor that day." Coran's eyes were filled with both sadness and pride. Alfor's words swam in his head.. "He always knew you would become a great leader, Allura. Even with him gone, you have become such an incredible leader. He would be so proud of you."

Her hands trembled around the insignia, and she couldn't stop these tears that streamed down her face. She hugged the precious gift to her chest and let them fall, just this once. Just today.

Coran gently wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into him. He let her cry, because she had to. She couldn't be strong alone forever. Everyone breaks at one point, even Alfor, and he had been there for him when he had as well. And he knew that after she broke she would rise up even stronger than before. Just like her father. He would be there to support her every step of the way.

She cried. She cried into his chest and wailed into his shirt. So many pent up feelings were now unrestrained and breaking free. Grief, sadness, anger, bitterness, regret, mourning, loss, all of it came exploding out at once and he held her tight as she trembled and sobbed.

She let it all out, and when it was over, it was over. She sniffed back her tears and dried her eyes and stood tall. She would not cry anymore. She collected herself and she was in control. She would be strong, and she wore the Altean royal insignia with pride.

She would be her father's legacy.


	4. Lance's Letters

_Dear Mama,_

 _We found the Blade of Marmora's base today. Keith and Shiro went to see if they could form an alliance, and they've been in there for about 8 vargas, which is about the same as 8 hours. The base is between two black holes, beside some giant blue star, with a small opening that's only open for a little while. Coran said the opening won't be be back for 2 quintants. So that's 2 days of waiting for us back here at the Castle of Lions. I'm hoping that everything is fine._

 _If we can get the Marmorites on our side (that's what I call the members of the Blade of Marmora) then we'll have a better chance of fighting Zarkon and the Galra Empire after that. The only problem is that they're all Galra rebels. Allura doesn't seem to think they're trustworthy. I guess we'll see what Shiro and Keith say when they get back._

 _How is everyone back home? Today is Riley's birthday. I can't believe she's already 8! Make sure to tell her not to grow up too quickly or I won't recognize her when I get back. I was thinking about Marco today. Hunk made this dish that tasted almost just like his boliche. The spices were a little different, and he was missing the plantains, but it just reminded me of home. I really miss Marco's boliche._

 _I miss you all. I hope everyone is well and I hope I can see you soon,_

 _Love, Lance._

Lance let out a soft sigh as he set his pencil down and stretched his arms over his head. He wished he could believe the words he wrote. Would he really be able to see his family again? The Galra Empire had reigned for 10,000 years. Would the seven of them really be able to take it down…? Was that even possible in his lifetime?

Would he really ever see his family again…?

He stared up at the ceiling of his room and blinked away budding tears. Would his family grow old and forget about him…? Would his mother forget the face of her youngest son? The day he had left for the Garrison, she had held him so tight and cried and cried. He had been the first of his siblings to move so far away, even for a short amount of time, and the idea of him not being next door at the farthest had broken her heart. What had she done when she got news of his disappearance? He clenched his jaw and swallowed back the knot in his throat. Those sorts of feelings were better left unthought-of. It was best to hold onto the hope that they would see Earth again someday. If that wasn't the case…then why did he even write these letters?

He took a deep breath to calm his emotions. He had to keep himself in check. Getting upset about this stuff wasn't going to change it. There was no use in crying. He folded up the letter and slid it into an envelope just as someone knocked on his door. "Yeah…?"

"Hey." The bedroom door slid open and Pidge peeked inside. She glanced at his somber face and at the letter. "Everything ok…?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Lance waved his hand dismissively and gave her his usual smile. "What's up?"

"Nothing really. Hunk is making dinner and Coran and Allura are still on the bridge waiting to see if they hear anything from Shiro and Keith." She walked into the room and leaned against the wall beside the desk he was at and gave a heavy sigh. "Since we're so close to those black holes, it's messing with my equipment's sensors."

"So you're bored." Lance chuckled and stood up. He grabbed the letter and went to his bed, pulling out a box from underneath it.

"Yes." Pidge drew out the word in a whine and hung her shoulders in defeat. She followed him, sitting on the edge of his bed. She watched as he opened up the box and slid the envelope in front of hundreds of others. "What are those?"

"Letters to my mom." He closed it up and slid it back under the bed before sitting down on the bed beside her. "When I left for the Garrison, she made me promise to write her every day. I know I can't send them out now, but I guess the habit just stuck. When we get back to Earth, she'll have a lot to read."

"No kidding." Pidge gave a soft laugh at that. His words brought to mind her own mother. Would her mom like something like that? She had always seemed interested when her dad told his stories. Maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea.

"She used to write me back every day too." Lance smiled as he recalled the memories and he laughed a little nervously. "It was kinda embarrassing; she told me that she read my letters out loud to the rest of the family, so I had to start embellishing them a little back at the garrison."

"A little?" Pidge raised an eyebrow and scooted back on the bed, folding up her legs. She knew Lance well enough that his embellishing was much more than just a "little". She only hoped his mother knew him well enough to know better. "What lies did you tell your mother?"

"They weren't lies. They were just exaggerations for theatrical purposes." Lance defended. "You know, like…when I was a cargo pilot, we had a mission where one of the engines went down in an explosion and I had to land the ship safely. I told her about how I masterfully maneuvered around spires with one working engine to get the ship landed safely _and_ didn't lose any cargo. It wasn't a lie. I just left out the part about it being a simulation."

Pidge eyed him skeptically. "And the part where _you_ were the one to take out the engine?"

"Nuance." Lance waved her accusation away and crossed his arms. "Besides, the point is, I don't have to exaggerate anything since we've been on team Voltron. We get to do cool stuff all the time. She's going to lose her mind when she reads all of those letters."

His head seemed to swell at the idea of his family getting to hear the stories of the cool, alien fighting, blue lion piloting, sharpshooter Lance. He couldn't wait for the day when he could show off his lion and demonstrate his piloting skills to his siblings and little cousins. He always told them he would be a great pilot someday. He would finally get to prove that to them.

Pidge laughed at his puffed out chest and listened as he went on about how he would be the coolest son and nephew and pride of the family. He had a point. They had done some pretty impressive things since they left Earth. Not only did they pilot Voltron, the greatest weapon in the universe, but they had managed to defeat hundreds of Galra fighters, face entire fleets of enemies and free a handful of planets from Galra reign. Ideally, they would be the ones to free the entire universe of the Galra. They would have even bigger, flashier and more impressive battle stories to bring home. Lance would go from being a pilot to…well basically the savior of the universe. Maybe it was okay for them all to have a little pride in that.

"Matt is going to freak when I tell him I'm a pilot. And a pilot of Voltron at that." Pidge cocked a smile. "When I tell him about all the planets we've been to, he'll be so jealous. Especially when I tell him about Olkarion. He would love that place. He always bragged about all the planets he'd go to someday. You should have seen him when he found out he was going to Kerboros. He was practically bouncing off the walls he was so excited. He wouldn't stop talking about it for months. 'I'll be going further than any other human has gone' he kept saying."

"Well I'd say you've got him beat." Lanced smirked and leaned back on his hands. "You can tell him all your crazy stories and rub it in."

"We sure will have a lot of stories when we get back." Pidge looked up at the ceiling absentmindedly. Her mind was at home, with her family. She could see Matt's wide eyes when she told him about the Balmera and her father's series of questions when she told him about the Olkari. Her mother would smile at them all with a quiet pride. She couldn't wait to have everyone together again.

"You really think we'll be able to go back to Earth…?" Lance's voice was soft and his smile had faded. The fear of never seeing his family again was obvious on his face as he looked at her. He missed his family so much. He missed his mother's letters and hearing her voice when she called. He missed her hugs at Christmas time and noisiness of the house when everyone was over. He wanted that again. He wanted to know he could go home.

Pidge watched him for just a second, contemplating her words, and when she spoke them, she did so with confidence. "Yeah, I do."

"You think so? I mean, Zarkon has reigned for ten _thousand_ years. He rules almost the entire known universe, Pidge. I mean we may be able to make a dent in his reign, but in our lifetime, is it really possible to overthrow the entire Galra Empire?" These were obvious thoughts that had gone through his head many times.

"Yeah, I do." Pidge repeated with even stronger confidence. "Lance, we have Voltron. It's the strongest weapon in the universe. Look at all the stuff we've done so far. We've helped a lot of people. The Arusians, the Balmerans, the Olkari; they all believe in Voltron. The least we could do is believe in it too. I mean we are the ones piloting it after all."

"Yeah…" But that was the problem. Could they do it with him as a paladin? He'd never been good at piloting back at the garrison. He made mistakes. None of them have been dire so far, and they had done some cool stuff, but what about when things got really serious? They could easily find someone better…

Pidge set her hand on his shoulder and he caught her eyes. She looked serious, like she was trying her best to form her thoughts into words. "Lance, you have to believe that we can do it. Just like I believe that I'll find my family. I…I dunno…I guess it's like a fuel, to keep you going. If you don't have it, you won't be able to keep moving forward. But if you believe you'll make it back home, then you will."

He stared at her and took in her words. She was speaking from her own perspective. Of course, finding her family seemed like a daunting task. Maybe just as daunting as defeating Zarkon. They could be anywhere in the entire Universe! But she never faltered in her determination to succeed. She didn't have the luxury to doubt herself. None of them did. Including him.

She pulled her hand away, feeling a little embarrassed. She was never the best at pep talks and his silence seemed to be telling her that hers hadn't been too successful. She felt slightly relieved when a smile spread across his face.

"Awwe Pidge." He cooed with that stupid grin. "Have you been hanging around Shiro too much lately? 'You just have to believe!' That's totally something Shiro would say."

She could feel her face getting hot and she snapped at him. "No! Shut up! I was trying to cheer you up! I'm not one for pep talks, okay? That's the last time I try to be nice to you."

She huffed and crossed her arms, turning away from him as to avoid his obnoxious grin. She looked to the ceiling as Hunk's voice chirped over the castle's speaker system. "Hey everyone! Dinner is ready! Come get some grub!"

"That sounds like our cue." Lance stood up and Pidge followed suit. She passed him a sour look before heading to the door and into the hall.

"Pidge." Lance caught her at the door and she answered with a glare which didn't affect him at all. His expression was surprisingly soft, which caught her attention. "Thanks."

"Yeah, yeah." She turned away with a huff and headed towards the kitchen. "Come on, let's get dinner."


	5. Keith's Confession

Tomorrow's plans had been solidified. Hunk and Keith would go to retrieve the scaultrite from the belly of the weblum while Shiro, Lance and Pidge went to Beta Traz to rescue the esteemed genius Slav. Allura would go to the Balmera to retrieve a crystal large enough to power the teleduv and Coran would meet with the Olkari to begin building it. The members of the Blades of Marmora would be staying in the castle to help implement the upcoming mission, much to Allura's distaste.

The Blades departed the bridge to go settle in for the night in the many rooms of the castle, leaving the team to discuss any small details. Shiro waited till the door slid shut behind the last of them before turning to Keith. The paladin was sitting a little slumped in his chair with his arms crossed, looking both pained and exhausted. He and Shiro hadn't slept in a good two days, and on top of that Keith had had to undergo ruthless trials to be accepted into the Blades of Marmora and get some answers. There was so doubt that he could use some time in a healing pod. But there was something important that needed to be done before that.

Shiro set his hand on Keith's shoulder, and his eyes flicked up to him. Shiro didn't have to say anything. He knew what he had to do. He couldn't keep it a secret.

"Hey guys…" He caught everyone's attention as they were walking towards the door, and he stood up. "Before you go…I need to tell you something…"

In response to their questioning stares and Lance's tired groan, he held out his blade and unwrapped the cloth around the hilt so that they could see the glowing purple symbol.

"Ever since I can remember, I've had this blade. I never knew where it was from or what the symbol meant. When we met Ulaz, I recognized the symbol and I started to wonder where I got this knife and who gave it to me. At the base of the Blade of Marmora I went through a series of trials. When I went through them, I found out that this blade came from my mother who I never knew. I managed to awaken it and according to Kolivan…that can only happen if I have Galra blood in me." His voice tapered off a little. He stole a brief glance at the others. He fully expected to see disgust and hatred from them. He had the blood of their enemy in him after all. But what he found on their faces was shock, disbelief and a little confusion. "I may be part Galra…but that doesn't matter to me. I know who I am. I'm the paladin of the red lion. My goal here isn't going to change."

"Doesn't matter?" Allura held an expression of hurt and betrayal. She scoffed at him. "You're telling me that you come from the race that killed my father? Who took away everything I ever knew? Because of the Galra, I cannot ever see Altea, or my family again, and you say it 'doesn't matter'?"

"Princess…" Coran took a step towards her with the intention to comfort and calm her, but she wasn't in any mood to be coddled by him. She took a step towards Keith as rage started to rise from the hurt.

"Already I've had to form an alliance with Galra, and accept these Blades of Marmora into my castle, not knowing if or when they may betray us, and you tell me now that I have a Galra as a paladin of Voltron?" Her voice rose in anger. How could they just expect her to trust these Galra? These monsters took everything from her. They didn't understand what she felt. They couldn't understand. "I cannot accept that."

"Princess, I'm not going to turn on you." This reaction had been what Keith had expected. He understood that she had every right to hate him. He couldn't change that he had descended from the ones who had killed her people and annihilated her entire planet. "I'm still a paladin of Voltron. I'm still going to defeat the Galra Empire and take down Zarkon. That's not going to change."

"How do you expect me to believe that? Galra are nothing but liars and killers. You hid your blade. You kept this from us." Allura hissed her words at him, narrowing her eyes. The very idea of having a Galra as a paladin of Voltron sickened her. And piloting her father's lion, no less! Clearly, trusting a Galra as a paladin hadn't gone well the first time. She wasn't going to make the same mistake.

"I didn't know." Keith's anger started to rear at her accusations. He didn't have any idea that his knife had anything to do with the Galra until they met Ulaz. He had never once lied to them. They _knew_ him. They knew he wouldn't ever betray them. They knew he would do everything he could to defeat Zarkon. Why was she acting like he was suddenly a different person? "It's not like I wanted this. Six months ago I didn't even know aliens existed and now I'm finding out that I'm part alien? This is a lot for me to handle too."

"Do you expect me to feel sympathy for you?" Allura sneered. "The Galra had no sympathy for the Alteans when they wiped out our planet. They didn't care when they murdered my people and destroyed my home. Your people took everything from me! And you expect me to trust you? You expect me to feel sympathy for you? Your kind killed my father!"

"At least you knew yours!" Keith lashed out at her with his words, his anger bubbling over. "You got to have a family! You know your heritage! I never asked to be left in the dark about my own blood! I've spent my whole life trying to figure things out on my own. I can't change what the Galra have done and I can't change who my parents are. All I can do is fight Zarkon, and change things as they are now. Just let me do that. You don't have to trust me."

"You Galra don't deserve a family." Her words were venomous, and she could see how badly they stung him by the pain in his eyes.

"Princess." Coran warned her to stop.

She knew she had crossed a line, but she didn't care. She had pent up so much sadness and anger towards the Galra for so long now that it all came spilling out on Keith as a scapegoat. "Every Galra deserves their misfortune because of the blood in your veins. You have stolen thousands of families from others. I have every right to hate you. I have every right not to trust you. You took my family. Why should you have the luxury of knowing yours?"

She glared daggers at him, never breaking eye contact. She saw his breath hitch at her words, and watched hurt and sadness change to anger. He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, but he didn't swing. He glared but he didn't swing, and she saw something she couldn't place amongst the anger in his eyes. He kept his mouth shut. She almost wanted him to retaliate. She wanted to lay into him and take out all the anger she'd kept bottled up, but deep down she knew it wouldn't fix anything. Taking it out on him wouldn't bring her father back.

Everyone was looking at her. They had sympathy in their eyes, but she had a feeling it wasn't for her. She had gone too far. Again, she didn't care to hold any empathy for a Galra. She balled her hands into fists and shoved past him, making her way towards the door. The words she spoke on her way out were laced with fury and anguish. "My father made the mistake of trusting a Galra. I will not make the same mistake."

* * *

Keith stared up at the red lion as she rested in her bay. He wanted nothing more than to board her and fly far away from here, but if he did…where would he go? He had no place on Earth. He had no one to go back to and nowhere to go. But he had a place here with red, as a paladin of Voltron. That was all he had. Would he being part Galra take that away…? Would she eventually reject him too?

It was only a matter of time, and he knew it. He'd always known it. Allura was only the first, but in time the others would come to hate him too. He could only stick around in one place for so long before it happened.

So why did it hurt so badly this time?

His entire life he'd dedicated himself to searching for something to give him a sense of reason. He'd thought that it was being a pilot at the Garrison. He'd truly enjoyed learning how to pilot ships, and had focused every ounce of energy on being the best. But then Shiro disappeared and he lost his focus and got expelled. He found himself lost again.

But now, he had something he wanted to be a part of more than anything before. Being a Paladin of Voltron and fighting the Galra…it was what he _wanted_. He could be a part of a team and save thousands…maybe millions of people. He finally had the closest thing to a family he'd ever had before. He finally had a _purpose_.

" _You don't deserve this. You Galra deserve misfortune."_ Those words rattled his brain in torment. He knew Allura was right. This was all just too good to be true. He'd gotten attached and when it all ended it would tear him apart. He knew better. He had to end it before then. He had to leave.

He felt someone's cold hand on his shoulder and he knew immediately that it was Shiro. He squeezed Keith's shoulder slightly and stood beside him, following his gaze to the red lion. "Whatever it is you're thinking, stop."

"You don't know what I'm thinking." Keith crossed his arms and looked down to the floor.

"Yes, I do. I've known you a long time, Keith." Shiro looked down at him, and Keith avoided eye contact. They say eyes are the windows to the soul, but even if Shiro couldn't see his eyes, he was an open book. "We need you here."

"I'm Galra, Shiro." Keith's words came out a little louder than he wanted. "I'm the enemy. I shouldn't be here."

"Yes, you should." Shiro's stern gaze didn't falter. "You're a Paladin of Voltron. It doesn't matter what kind of ancestry you have. You know who you are, Keith. You said so yourself just earlier today. Have you forgotten that? You're the Red Paladin. Isn't that what you want to be?"

Keith bit his lip at that. He couldn't answer. He couldn't because he wanted it so badly, but he felt that if he spoke the words, he wouldn't have the strength to let it go.

Shiro sighed when Keith responded with silence. "Come on, Keith. I know this is what you want. Ever since we joined team Voltron, you've been happier than I've ever seen you. This team, this castle, Keith this is your home now. You have a family. You deserve this."

"No, I don't!" Keith snapped at him and his shout echoed across the bay. Immediately, he looked apologetic for yelling and took a step back, averting his eyes. "It's too good to be true, Shiro. I…I don't deserve any of this. Allura was right about everything. Maybe everything that's happened in my life is some kind of punishment for being Galra. Everyone I ever knew has left. My own mom didn't want me. You're the only one who stuck around, and I've already lost you once. If I stay here any longer, I won't…I won't be able to let go when everything falls apart. Allura already hates me. It's only a matter of time before it's everyone else."

"Keith." Shiro softened a bit and he was glad that Keith was slowly opening up. "Allura doesn't hate you. She just needs time. You have to understand that she was thrown into all this just as much as we were. Her planet was destroyed and she never got the chance to grieve. What she said to you was her venting feelings. She has a lot of pent up feelings about the Galra and that came out aimed at you. But you know she didn't mean them."

Keith couldn't agree to that. She chose her words in a way that would hurt him specifically, and it had worked. He stayed quiet, staring a hole in the ground, but he jumped a little when Shiro suddenly pulled him into a hug. He stiffened in his arms, taken aback by the embrace.

"No one is going to hate you and no one is going to kick you off of Voltron." Shiro squeezed him tight. "We need you here. You're a valuable member of our team. We can't just replace you so easily. You know that and we all know that. I've already lost my right arm once. Don't make me lose it again."

"But I'm Galra…" Keith's words got lost in Shiro's shoulder and he finally started to relax a little. He returned the hug slowly, taking in Shiro's words. It didn't ease his doubts really…it didn't happen that easily…but it reassured him a little.

Shiro chuckled a little and flexed the fingers on his robotic arm. "You're about as Galra as I am. That makes no difference. You're Keith, a Paladin of Voltron, and your blood doesn't matter. It doesn't change who you are, and what you want. You want this, don't you?"

It took a while, but Keith finally nodded and Shiro smiled. "Good. It's about time you get what you want."


	6. Coran's Inspection

_The green lion soared through the sky, spinning around asteroids and gliding around planets. With it_ _'s jawblade, the magnificent beast took out enemy ships with ease and grace, and if they fought back they were swiftly torn apart by her vines. The red lion came up beside her, only slowing slightly to match her speed. Alfor's joyous voice rang through the comms. "You're an absolute natural at this, Coran!"_

 _At the helm of the green lion, Coran manipulated the controls with such ease it was as if he'd been born manning the lion. Together, they were unified at Alfor's side, taking out enemies and fighting against tyranny. While in her cockpit, Coran had to take a moment to revel at Alfor's incredible creation. These lions were the most powerful beings in the universe, and sitting in her pilot's seat, he could feel her power coursing through him. He could do anything._

 _"Coran."_

 _He could already hear the cheers from the people below. He spun through the air, taking out an enemy cruiser before it could fire at the red lion. Finally, he was able to do something to protect Alfor. Finally, he could do something to help people. He felt like he knew this lion inside and out. It was familiar and came naturally. He felt himself engulfed in her embrace, and it felt so much like home. He never wanted this to end._

"Coran!" Pidge's shout abruptly brought Coran back to reality, and she stared at him in irritation. He had to blink a few times to realize that his daydream hadn't been reality at all. He looked down at Pidge as she sat impatiently at the controls of the Green Lion while they drifted slowly in space. "You're supposed to be telling me what to do here."

"Sorry. Right." Coran cleared his throat and got refocused. He stood behind Pidge's seat and peered at the screens in front of them. He had joined her out here to make sure that the lion was functioning correctly after a their series of rigorous battles. It was true that he could tell a lot from inside the castle, but the best way to find damage was from the cockpit. A cockpit that he admittedly wished he was sitting at."There isn't anything glaringly wrong, so let's go over the basics and make sure everything is working as it should. Fly towards that small asteroid belt just ahead and test out each of your weapons. If anything feels incorrect, bring it to my attention so that I can take a look at it back at the castle."

"Got it." Pidge surged forward towards the asteroids and shot the first one with a laser beam, reducing it to smithereens. She tested out her jaw blades and tail laser on the second and third, finding them all to be working perfectly as she left behind a trail of crumbled rock

"Why do we have to check all of this anyway? I thought the lions kind of healed themselves." She watched as another asteroid was ripped apart by her vines before looking up to Coran who was watching everything on the screens with scrutiny.

"You aren't wrong there. They are capable to an extent of self healing, but just like people, it can only go so far. They are _nearly_ indestructible, but that doesn't mean they can't be damaged. It just takes a lot, and Zarkon has been pushing them quite far." Coran plucked at the end of his mustache as his eyes scanned her screens. "They get tired just as much as you Paladins."

"Have you ever seen one of them get damaged…?" Pidge looked down at the thrust levers that she had her hands gripped around. When she was connected to Green, she felt so invincible. She'd honestly never imagined her getting damaged. They'd collided into planets, been shot at by ion cannons, smashed into fighters ships and fought giant robeasts, and she had always come out of it unscathed. If that didn't leave a scratch, then what would they have to go up against to actually damage the lions.

"Yes, but only once." Coran responded with a slight chuckle. "It was very early on, as the original paladins were still getting used to the lions. They all bonded immediately, of course, but just as it did with you all, it took time to build that connection. The Paladin of the Blue lion pushed it to the limits a little too far a little too quickly. It was nothing dire, of course, and Alfor and I patched it up quickly. I took up the role of checking over the lions after battles to asses any minor damage or problems. We have to remember that they may be giant mecha robots, but they are sentient beings. We shouldn't make them do everything for us, so when we have the opportunity to help them, we should take it."

"I guess that makes sense." Pidge spun around asteroids, testing out the thrust on all four legs. Coran was always a stickler about keeping the lions clean. Maybe that was another part of taking care of them. Along with being a decent pilot and not crashing them into things. Sometimes that was hard not to do with the Galra constantly attacking. Suddenly, she felt a little bad for green. She'd been through the wringer. "You sure know a lot about the lions."

"Well, that's because I helped build them." Coran stated with a bit of a smirk, because revising his statement. "Well, as much as we humans could build them. They sort of built themselves, guided by King Alfor. I helped where they needed it, but as they were built up, I studied the inner workings of each Lion, knowing I would be their future mechanic."

"Is that where you got the nickname the 'Coranic'?" Pidge smirked at him, raising an eyebrow.

"Precisely!" Coran snapped his fingers as if that was a nickname to be proud of. "That nickname was actually given to my by the original Blue Paladin."

"How creative." Pidge rolled her eyes. She could see Lance coming up with a silly nickname like that. Maybe Blue had a thing for dorky paladins.

"Pidge, look out!" Coran's shout made her jump, and she saw immediately what he was pointing at. Disguised against one of the asteroids was a huge, gruesome space octopus -or that was the best way to describe it anyway- whose long tentacles were closing in on them. He had been so well camouflaged against the rocks that even Coran hadn't seen it until they were too close.

Pidge twisted and yanked the thrust back, pulling her lion out of the way of the nearing tentacles. She spun and swirled around them, frowning at how quickly it managed to react. She would avoid one only to find another right behind it. It had completely closed her in. "What is this thing?!"

"It's an enormous Dodecsca. I've never seen one this large." Coran watched it almost in awe. He pointed at it's face, where she could see what looked like a huge beak. "It has twelve long tentacles that stick to whatever it touches. Once it has you, it'll pull you in and crush you with its beak. We used to use the beaks of deceased dodecsca to make Altean armor. It can snap an entire ship in half! Don't let it pull us in!"

"Great, It's a twelve legged alien octopus with a killer beak. Super. How do I get around these legs?!" Pidge groaned at the web she seemed to be tangled in, doing her best to avoid touching any of the tentacles but in every direction she seemed to be surrounded.

She had a better idea, and she readied her laser, aiming it for the closest tentacle. If she couldn't just fly away, she would have to attack back. She pressed down on the button just as Coran yelled, "Pidge, no!"

Her beam made contact, and the monster roared in pain. All of it's tentacles squirmed, but she didn't get the chance to spot an opening before she was suddenly engulfed in complete darkness.

"Firing at it will trigger it to spew out a pitch black cloud." Coran noted, definitely too late, and he caught Pidge's glare with the little light from the control panels.

"When I asked what it was, I was hoping to get _all_ of the information, Coran. I didn't expect to run into a giant space octopus. How does the ink even spread in space? It's not like water." The lion lurched as one of the tentacles slammed down on top of it. She pushed the thrust to the limit, but to no avail. They were stuck to it like glue.

"I don't have the slightest idea what an 'octopus' is, but I know that a dodesca is nothing to turn your nose up at." Coran held onto the back of her seat tight as the thing yanked them upwards. Pidge gripped the controls hard and readied another laser. It was already dark, so it couldn't hurt to hit it now. She swung her lio nas she fired it, hoping to hit the maximum amount of targets, and judging by the beast's screams, she'd hit at least a few. The beam also managed to cut through the smoky cloud enough for her to see just a few feet in front of her for a moment.

"Pidge, put the thrust at full blast and pull downward." Coran had also noticed the tiny opening of light and he seemed to gather something from it. Pidge nodded and did as he said, pushing her thrust to the max and yanking the cursor control device down. Her lion pulled hard against the tentacles, but it was still drawing her in.

"It's still pulling us." Pidge gritted her teeth as she tried to maintain control as the lion struggled.

"Hold steady." Coran was seemingly staring into the blackness, but as she followed his gaze, she could see that the emission from her thrusters were causing the ink to billow and move enough to open a glimpse here and there. He was watching for every opening he got. "Extend the legs a little more. Can you form your vine cannon?"

Pidge readied the cannon quickly, extending her lions legs out, and after a second she felt the lion's feet make impact on all four sides. She pushed against the object, struggling to break free of the tentacles pushing her towards the beast's beak. She stole a glance at Coran, who was still staring intensely at the dark cloud in front of them. "Coran, are you sure you know what you're doing?"

He held a hand out for her to wait, which wasn't an easy task to do when the thing was pushing against them with everything it had. Her Lion's alarms started to go off as it slammed another tentacle down on them, causing the lion to lurch. When it did, Coran brought his hand down fast. "Fire now!"

Pidge didn't hesitate and slammed down on the control, shooting out a bright green beam that cut straight through the cloud of smoke. The beam entered straight into the dodesca's mouth, which was only a few inches in front of them. The green lion straddled the beak on both sides and had she had to hold out any longer, they would have been bitten I half. Luckily, the beam burst into a frenzy of vines, pulling the octopus into itself.

"Quick, hit the thrust and sharply pull upward." Coran commanded, and she didn't mind obeying. She wrenched the controls up, tearing free of the weakened dodesca's tentacles before they were all pulled into the converging beast. She shot away from the monster, only glancing back to see it's last tentacle being dragged in by the vines. Once a good distance away from the asteroids, she looked back at Coran.

"You really do know a lot about these lions." She cast him smile, which he returned warmly.

"I may have never flown one, but I've spent many years studying them. They were Alfor's pride, after Allura, of course." He chuckled. "I hope to help them whenever I can, and you Paladin's as well."

He may not be a paladin, but he couldn't deny that he felt a connection with each lion. He wasn't sure whether it was his help building them that led to that, or the fact that his best friend had built them that caused his connection. He could see Alfor's personality in all of their designs, and having known their creator so well, he felt he knew them too. It was something he couldn't fully explain. Perhaps like a shred of Alfor's lingering presence remained in each lion. It was a comforting snd familair presence. "Oh, speaking of, the thrust reverser on your back left needs a little maintenance. It isn't firing as strongly as the others. I'll get that corrected in a tick when we get back to the castle."

"Thanks, but next time you want to do an inspection, don't lead me somewhere with giant space octopuses."


	7. Shiro's nightmare

_"Shiro…please." Keith choked out his words through rasping breaths as his hands desperately clawed at the robotic arm that was clasped tight around his neck. His pleas only caused him to tighten his grip and a crooked grin spread across his face as the paladin's grasping hands grew limp. At his feet lay the other three paladin's, bloodied and beaten. They had foolishly believed that they could defeat him; the champion and the leader of Voltron, the most powerful weapon in the universe._

 _"Stop it!" Shiro screamed but his words got lost somewhere, never making it out of his mouth. He pulled and struggled to gain control of his own limbs, but his body wouldn't move like he commanded. He had no control over his own body and found his mind stuck in a void that he couldn't climb his way out of. He was forced to watch the horrified expressions of his team as they were violently attacked by their own leader and friend. His screams fell unheard as he had to hear the dying pleas of his found family at his own hands._

 _"You could have been our greatest weapon!" Haggar's words echoed in his mind, and he wanted nothing more than to shut out her villainous cackle that ricocheted throughout his brain._

 _"No. No, no, no!" Shiro struggled to regain control. He watched as he used his Galra arm to tear the castle apart. He saw Allura's terrified expression as he swung at her. He had to fight this. He had to stop this. They could never take over his control. He wouldn't be their weapon. He wouldn't be their pawn. He had to get control. He had to fight this. "I will never stop fighting you!"_

Shiro shot up straight in his bed, sweat dripping from his forehead. Every muscle in his body was tensed and his hands were balled into fists. He was breathing fast and heavy and it took a few moments for the bedroom to come into view. A dream. It was just a nightmare…

He let out a shaky breath and closed his eyes, willing himself to relax. It was just a dream, Shiro. The castle was fine. Everyone was fine. Relax.

He ran his hand through his hair and looked down at his prosthetic arm. He consciously flexed his fingers, finding relief when they moved as he commanded. He clenched and unclenched his fist a few times as he allowed his heart rate to slow down and his body to relax.

These nightmares seemed to be plaguing him more and more often. He tried to convince himself that they were just dreams…but he couldn't get rid of the fear that someday they wouldn't be just dreams anymore. Someday he could become the monster that they had intended him to be…

He tossed his blanket off and stood up, pulling on a shirt. If he tried to go back to sleep now, he'd just lie there and be overwhelmed with thoughts, so it was best to walk around and get some air.

The halls were quiet and his every step echoed. He made his way to the observation deck almost by habit. As a child, whenever he had felt tense, he would look up at the stars and find comfort. Now he was constantly surrounded by stars…but yet he still found himself here.

It was only about two years ago, he was a promising young pilot with a handful of successful missions under his belt. He would stare up at the stars from Earth and could tell you every constellation by name. Back then, space had been nothing but vast and fascinating nothingness; A world of mystery and exploration that he had dedicated himself to discovering. When they had told him he would pilot the mission to Kerboros, he could remember the thrill he felt. The idea of travelling to the edge of their solar system and finding life among the stars had been exhilarating.

It really was amazing how quickly everything changed.

Space had turned out to be even more intimidating than any human could have ever imagined. He had travelled to galaxies so far away that Earth wasn't even a distant star. He had travelled to incredible planets thriving with plant life and met aliens of all kinds. It was amazing. There was an endless amount of planets to travel to and species to discover.

But yet…thinking of it made him feel both in awe but also sad and angry. Every planet they'd landed on had been marred by the Galra. Entire planets had been wiped out, completely obliterating cultures and species. If the planet wasn't completely decimated, then the Galra were exploiting its resources and harming both the planet and its people. The Galra managed to reach from one end of the universe to the other, plaguing everyone in its path. Including him.

How long would it be before they reached Earth and did the same to it? If they hadn't found the Blue Lion and led the Galra away, it's likely that Earth would have been destroyed that very day. It was only a matter of time before they would go back to conquer it, if they hadn't already. If they ever returned to Earth…what would they return to?

"Hey." He turned to see Keith coming towards him. He stopped beside Shiro and followed his gaze out into the stars.

"Hey." Shiro let his shoulders loosen a bit. He hadn't realized that he had been tensing up as he thought about the Galra. "You should be resting. You were fighting for almost an entire day out there."

"I'm fine. I just woke up from the healing pod. Besides…I kind of have a lot on my mind." Keith stretched out his stiff arms for a second and rubbed his shoulders before crossing his arms. He glanced at Shiro with a raised eyebrow. "And what about you? You haven't slept in two days either."

"I was sleeping, I just…" He struggled to find the words. The leader of Voltron should be a composed, stoic figure. Not someone who sat up in the middle of a night unable to fall back asleep because of a silly nightmare. He tried hard to be the leader that Voltron needed. He tried to keep calm in tough situations and keep his fear and anxiety hidden in front of the others. But this was Keith. Keith was the only one who knew who he had been before all of this. The only one who had seen him at his worst, and whenever Shiro found himself in trouble, it was always Keith there to help him. And Keith…was Galra. But even after finding that out…every ounce of him still trusted him. That didn't change who he was. He couldn't even fathom that Keith could even come close to committing the crimes that his race had committed. If someone with Galra blood in their veins could fight against everything their entire race did, and had been doing for thousands of years…then maybe Shiro be all right too.

He glanced down at his robotic arm, and followed the creases on his palm. Someday, this arm might betray him. He didn't know what information lay among the Galra code or to what extent it could be used. What Hunk had said about the use of it to manipulate his mind and fabricate thoughts a memories…it wasn't impossible, and that's what scared him. The fear of that unknown wasn't something he could easily shake. But if that day came he had to maintain control in any way that he could. He could not allow himself to be used as a pawn.

Keith was watching him with a face etched with concern, but he remained silent. Shiro finally looked back at him, seeming to contemplate his words. "I keep having these nightmares that the Galra find a way to take control over by body. What Pidge and Hunk said about fabricating my memories and feeding ideas into my mind…I worry that someday they'll find a way to use me to fight against you and the others. In my dreams they use me to attack and kill everyone here and take Voltron."

"Shiro, you would never do something like that. You know that." Keith was quick to retaliate. "You're stronger than them. They can't control you."

"We can't know that, Keith." Shiro looked back at his hand, balling it into a fist. "This technology is a mystery to us. We don't know what it holds or what it can do. This thing is connected to my brain. It's not impossible for them to gain control that way. Keith, someday, if I lose control, and I ever try to hurt you or anyone here, I need you to stop me. I need you to promise that you can stop me, whatever it takes. If I were to ever hurt anyone here, I…I couldn't…I just need to know that you'll be there to stop it."

The words were difficult for him to say, and he felt vulnerable admitting these fears. But if he kept it hidden, and those fears came true, he felt better knowing that someone was aware and that Keith would be able to take action. Even when he couldn't trust his own mind, he knew he could trust Keith. He would make the right decision.

A range of expressions flashed across Keith's face before he could respond. Shiro saw fear, doubt, and denial, among others that he pushed away into resigned determination. "That's not going to happen, Shiro. They can't control you. You're here, with us, they can't get to you anymore."

"Please, Keith." Shiro's voice was so soft it was almost begging. His expression and turned intimidatingly serious, and his eyes bore into Keith's with pleading tenacity so intense that Keith involuntarily took a step back. "I _need_ to know that if it ever happens that you'll be there to stop me. Please Keith, I just need you to promise me that."

"I…" Keith's words hitched in his throat. Shiro was asking him to kill him. He knew it would never happen and that Shiro could never lose control, but the idea of agreeing to kill Shiro…it wasn't something that was easy to say. He wanted to deny it, to say he could never kill him, to admit that he couldn't make this promise. Shiro was all he had…he couldn't promise that he had the strength to take that away. But the look in Shiro's eyes was so desperate. He needed so badly to know that he wouldn't hurt anyone here. He needed so badly to be reassured that his fears wouldn't come true that his eyes were practically begging him to make that promise. It almost felt like he himself drew the words from Keith's lips. "I promise…"


	8. Lance's Training

"Ugh!" Lance groaned as he was thrown to the ground hard, gasping as the wind was knocked from his chest. He coughed a few times and shot Shiro a glare from the training deck floor. "You can't go a little easy on me? Geez…"

"Hey, you're the one who came to me asking to help teach you combat training." Shiro cocked a smile. He offered Lance a hand, which he accepted and Shiro pulled him back to his feet. He resumed a fighting stance and waited for Lance to do the same. "Did you really expect me to go easy on you?"

"Maybe a little." Lance tried to stretch his sore back out a little before mimicking Shiro's stance. "I'm not Keith, you know. I don't spend all my time training. I'm not used to this."

"No, but you want to be." Shiro stepped towards him, swinging his arm down hard. Lance caught it with his forearm and deflected it, throwing his other hand towards Shiro's gut. He dodged it with a twist to his right and retaliated with a kick to Lance's knees, which caused him to jump back. "Otherwise you wouldn't have come to me."

"Okay, but maybe not as extreme as Keith." Lance clarified, being sure to keep Shiro at a good distance as they circled each other, both waiting for the other to make a move. "But the Galra seem to really like hand to hand combat, so I need to at least be able to match up."

"Wouldn't Keith have been a better one to ask to train with then?" Shiro inquired as Lance lunged at him, throwing a punch at his jaw. Shiro ducked quickly, and landed a solid punch to Lance's stomach, which doubled him over in a fit of coughing.

"Jesus, Shiro." Lance choked as he cradled his stomach. "At least use your left hand."

"Sorry." Shiro apologized, again, offering a hand. Lance took it and straightened, taking a breath to try to ignore the pain.

"You're starting to make me wish I _had_ asked Keith." He frowned, glaring. They hadn't even been at it for long yet, and he was already sore all over. This guy was ruthless. Nonetheless, Lance kept getting back up and he fell back into stance.

"Why didn't you?" Shiro followed suit, casting him a curious glance. When it came to learning how to fight a Galra, Keith was the best option they had. Aside from asking one of the other Blades.

"Come on, I can already hear the ridicule now. 'You? You want me to train you? Yeah, right, you won't ever reach my level.'" Lance impersonated Keith's voice, adding a bit of narcissism that earned a raised eyebrow from Shiro.

"He wouldn't say that." He swung left to avoid a kick from Lance, and dodged left again to barely avoid an elbow. "I think he would have been happy to train with you."

"Yeah right. He trains for hours up here, if I trained with him I wouldn't ever get a break." Lance swung again, brushing Shiro's shoulder. "He'd be like a drill sergeant, and I can't exactly say I miss Iverson."

"I don't think you have the right impression of Keith." Shiro forced a flattened palm towards Lance's chest, but he ducked down quickly and knocked his hand away while swinging a fist at Shiro's stomach. Shiro caught his wrist with his free hand and twisted it, making the boy yelp slightly before he let go. "Why do you dislike him so much?"

Lance jumped back from him, shaking his sore wrist. He was growing more and more frustrated at his inability to land a hit on Shiro. "I don't dislike him. _He_ doesn't like _me_. I just see him as a rival."

"Why is that?" Shiro was starting to ask the questions that had bothered him for a while now. Ever since they teamed up Keith and Lance were always arguing and bickering. It never really made sense, because when he asked Keith about it, he would just always say Lance just hated him for some unknown reason. Keith didn't hate Lance, he just wasn't good at befriending people, and he was under the impression that Lance didn't want to be friends. So maybe knowing what this rivalry was about would shed some light on the whole ordeal.

"I mean, I guess it started at the Garrison. We were in the same class." Lance jumped back as Shiro lunged at him, swiping his hand where Lance's chest has just been. Lance ducked down and kicked Shiro's knees out from under him, causing him to stumble. He tried to take his chance and swung for his chest, but Shiro caught his arm and twisted it behind Lance's back before shoving him away.

"I'm never going to hit you." Lance groaned, running his arm across his forehead to stop the sweat from running into his eyes. He was panting pretty heavily and Shiro was starting to sweat too.

"Yes, you will. Let's take a break for now." Shiro went and grabbed the water bottles that they had left in the corner of the room and passed Lance's to him. Lance caught it and took a seat on the floor for a minute, gulping down the water. Shiro took a seat beside him.

"So this rivalry, what all happened at the Garrison?" He took a few sips of his water and let Lance catch his breath.

"Nothing really." Lance gave a small shrug. "I mean, it was kind of one sided, I guess. Keith was the best in the class, so I mean, naturally I wanted to beat him. I'm sure everyone did. But I was just a cargo pilot and he was this super cool fighter pilot who did cool junk all the time. If it wasn't for him getting expelled I probably wouldn't have ever become a fighter pilot…" Lance's words drifted a little and Shiro watched him. He looked sad when he talked about this. Why…? He couldn't possibly still think he wasn't a decent pilot…right?

"Are you kidding?" Shiro gave a half a laugh, which made Lance look up at him. "Haven't you seen the things you've done with the blue lion? That's not something some cargo pilot could have done. You were clearly meant to be fighter class."

"Maybe." Lance gave a soft smile, seeming to perk a little bit as he recalled some of the missions they had gone on as Voltron. "I guess when we ended up on this team, me and Keith, I just wanted to prove that I wasn't just…some cargo pilot. But man, everyone here is so cool. Pidge is super smart and Hunk is super strong. Allura can fly an entire castle and Coran does everything and then there's Keith and you. I can't even land a hit on you! I'm just…okay with a gun, I guess."

"You need to have more confidence in yourself." Shiro patted Lance on the back. "You're our sharpshooter. You prove that every day, Beta Traz being a recent example. You shouldn't sell yourself short. You're a Paladin of Voltron. That's a big deal. _You_ are a big deal."

"You're just saying that." Lance frowned, looking away. Shiro caught a slight flush on his cheeks of embarrassment. "You won't even let me land a hit on you."

Shiro laughed. "Well, If I let you, that wouldn't be satisfying at all. Besides, the Galra aren't just going to let you either. You'll manage it in time. This is only our second session. Besides, once you hit me five times, you'll have to go up to the next level."

He stood up and started to stretch, readying himself for another round. Lance raised an eyebrow and stood up as well. "What's the next level?"

"Keith." Shiro laughed at the sullen look that crossed Lance's face. "He's better at this then me. He's the one you want to be training with. Trust me, I spar with him, and I lose more times than I win. I think he would be happy to train with you."

"You keep saying that." Lance stretched out his sore limbs for a few minutes before falling into position again. "I still think he would just get mad and tell me how bad I am."

"I've known Keith for a long time." Shiro lowered himself and ran at Lance who tried to dodge, but still got some of the hit. He brushed off the hit and retaliated quickly, bringing his knee up to catch Shiro in the gut. Shiro used his robotic arm to catch his knee, and slammed his other palm to Lance's chest, swiftly flipping him onto the ground. "He wants to be friends with you."

Lance wheezed out a groan but it only took a minute to catch his breath and get back to his feet. "Telling me that while beating me up isn't super convincing."

"Believe me. He's been alone his entire life. He doesn't know how to interact with people. Your fighting and bickering with him just makes him think you hate him." Shiro was probably saying too much, but he was focused on the fight and the words just sort of spilled out. Lance came at him again with a high kick this time, which Shiro dodged by spinning left. He tried to grab Lance's foot, but he was catching on and pulled away faster than he could grab. "Just give him a chance."

"He's hot headed, erratic and broody. The dude tried to fight Zarkon head on single handedly. Why would I want to spar with someone like that?" Lance swung away from Shiro's swing and went to grab his wrist, but he surprised himself when he actually got it, and his second of hesitation gave Shiro the chance to pull away. Lance groaned and got focused.

"You have a point there." Shiro chuckled. "You don't have to spar with him right away. Just…talk to him. Get to know him. You were the one that said you two made a good team, after all. He was so happy to hear that."

"Wait…I said what? When?" Lance cocked an eyebrow and spun behind Shiro, aiming an elbow at his neck, but Shiro ducked down and back, picking Lance up and flipping him over his back. Luckily, he managed to land on his feet and jump away before Shiro could elbow him in the back.

"When Sendak attacked the ship, and you got hurt. When you woke from your coma, you and Keith worked together to take him down. You told Keith you two made a good team." Shiro panted as he avoided more swings from Lance. "He was happy to hear that. It was an acceptance of sorts. He thought you were friends. He insisted on carrying you to the cryo-pod."

Lance dug through his memories, but he couldn't recall any of it. Guess being in a coma would do that.

"He was pretty upset when you didn't remember any of it. He thought he'd made a friend but everything was back to the way it was before, with you hating him." Shiro was sweating heavily now, which was an accomplishment in itself. It meant Lance was challenging him at least. "He's trying to accept everyone here, but he's so used to rejection that it's difficult for him. So a little acceptance is all he needs. It's the same for you, isn't it? You two aren't really all that different ."

Shiro lunged at him, and Lance was ready. He lowered himself and grabbed Shiro's hand, pushing it up and away from him. He swung to his left to avoid being body slammed by the larger paladin, but kept a firm hold on his wrist. Shiro stayed low and slammed his free fist into Lance's ribs, but he didn't crumble. He held Shiro tight and brought his knee up, hitting Shiro hard in his ribs. It was enough to draw a gasp and a series of coughs from Shiro and they they both let each other go, falling to the ground.

"I told you not to use your robot hand." Lance rubbed his chest, sure that a bruise was already forming.

Shiro gave a weak, but happy laugh. "I can't go too easy on you. You only have four more hits, after all."

Lance laughed and just laid on the ground, breathing hard. He'd managed one hit on Shiro. Maybe he could do this. If he could…maybe he really could take on Keith. He thought about Shiro's words for a moment. It wasn't like he hated Keith. It wasn't like that. He just seemed so...untouchable. Lance couldn't seem himself ever being equal to him in either piloting or combat. But maybe, if he kept this up, he could get a little closer.

Shiro set his hand on Lance's shoulder, smiling down at him reassuringly. "You're a good pilot, Lance, and a good fighter. Your lack of confidence is what's holding you back. Talk to Keith. If you get to know him you'll realize you're both on the same level. You can build each other up. You said it yourself. You two make a good team."

Lance sighed and sat up, stretching out his arms and chest. He stood up and held his hand out to Shiro. "Alright, fine. If I can land four more hits on you, I'll spar with Keith. But don't go easy on me. I can't go and lose to him."

Shiro laughed and accepted the hand, getting back to his feet. "You got it."


End file.
